Near to You
by Sparky176
Summary: Puck and Rachel - set after Rhodes. Title comes from Near to You by A Fine Frenzy. My little fantasy for Puck and Rachel. Drama, Romance, and Great Music, what more do you need!
1. Chapter 1

Near to You

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I've always kinda been rooting for Rachel and Finn, but after last week's episode I'm not a big Finn fan. So I am now in the Rachel and Puck camp-yeah, I know they'll never get together on the show but they both got screwed with the whole Quinn pregnancy. So here is my little Rachel/Puck fantasy (please bear with me, it's been a while since I've done any writing so I'm a bit rusty to say the least). The title comes from Near to You by A Fine Frenzy. I hope you enjoy and I would love to know what you think!

* * *

**Chapter 1**

As the lights went out Rachel was filled with a high from performing, but felt lower then she normally feels after her daily Slurpy Facials. Find her someone to love? No, she already had someone to love. It was more like someone to love her.

As both the stage and house lights came back on she pasted her smile back on, she had always been a good actor. But as soon as the curtain dropped and everyone began to celebrate, she slipped off to the wings and ran back to the choir room. She grabbed her tote bag filled with her clothes and purse and ran out to the student parking lot. It wasn't until she was unlocking her car that she finally let the tears drop.

She was back in Glee, back being the star, but at what cost? She knew that Finn had Quinn, but she thought that she might still have a chance, after all Quinn was an uber-bitch and it was only a matter of time until he saw that. Little did Rachel know that there is no chance what-so-ever. Quinn is now knocked up with Finn's baby, and Finn is doing anything to protect them, even if that means playing her. How was it possible to hate him so much for that, but still want him so badly?

Rachel was really not looking forward to Monday, but at least no one saw her run out of there like she did. She'll just think of something to tell them if they ask, which they probably won't. They'll just figure she had one of her diva fits and never have a second thought about it. After all, everyone thought Rachel Berry was just the Glee freak prone to Diva fits who had a knack wearing plaid skirts and a smile, not that she could possibly ever feel a _real_ emotion.

* * *

As the curtain dropped he turned to his right to see Finn and Quinn hugging and turned away in disgust. What was he suppose to do? It was his kid and he was ready to man up and accept the consequences, only Quinn wouldn't let him. And it's not like he could talk to anyone, it was his friend's girl who he knocked up. Yeah, that totally made him an ass, but Finn had been doing the Glee thing and Puck had seen the way he had been looking at Rachel. He was so caught up in his thoughts he almost missed her running out. What was with that girl and all of her freak-outs?

* * *

So Chapter 1 was a short little intro into what I'm thinking. I hope you liked it! I should have Chapter 2 later.


	2. Chapter 2

**Near to you**

Thank you so so SO much for all of the reviews and adding Near to You to your alerts. Here is Chapter 2, was hoping that it would be longer, but it's just been on of those Mondays. But I hope that you do enjoy what I'm posting and I would love to know what you think…

* * *

**Chapter 2**

As Rachel stepped into the halls on Monday she was ready. She had her favorite skirt on and was wearing her lucky charm, the pearl necklace her dads gave her for her fifteenth birthday. She lifted her chin, pasted on her smile, and did her little fast paced diva walk down the hall to her locker. After grabbing her Algebra book and shutting her locker she turned her head to see Puck and a couple of other football players walking down the hall. She slipped across the hall and walked into Mr Schuester's classroom because she needed to talk to him about coming back to Glee. Ok, ok, so she didn't really need to talk to him, but she just couldn't handle a face full of Slupry right now.

"Rachel? Is there something you need?"

"Just wanted to make sure that there was still Glee practice today?"

"Yeah, our usual time after lunch."

"OK, I'll see you then." Rachel ducked back into the hall and started to walk to her math class. So far so good, if only Finn and Quinn weren't in math with her.

* * *

Puck saw her duck into Mr. Schuester's class. He knows that's not her first period, it's math. He's seen her leave before when he was waiting for Finn, it's not like he keeps tabs on her or anything. And he knows that she walks down the hall at this time every morning, again not like he keeps tabs on her but because that's when he throws the slurpy. Everyday, like clockwork. And she always walks past him knowing that it's coming. It's almost become a game for him, waiting to see if she would show up and take it. He even began to admire the way she never ran away; she'd always take it face on, chin high.

In all honesty, he was actually glad that she did run today, he just couldn't take throwing the slurpy in her face. Not after he saw her run off on Saturday night. Rachel Berry might still drive him insane, but he felt for her, he'll just never actually admit it out loud. Puck takes a chug of the slurpy before tossing in into a nearby trash can.

* * *

As Rachel sat down at her desk Finn walks up. "Hey Rachel."

"Hello Finn."

"I just wanted to say thanks for what you did on Saturday night. I really do appreciate it."

"I didn't do it for you Finn. Those friends I was talking about are Mercedes, Tina, Kurt, and Artie. You know, those people who didn't try to play me instead of just telling me the truth."

Finn got that glazed look on his face he gets every now and then when someone says something that either surprises him or says something he doesn't understand.

"Finn! Your desk is over here." Quinn yells it from across the room, but no one pays them any attention. After all, everyone knows that she keeps him on a short leash.

Finn glances over at Quinn and can't help but think that what everyone says about pregnancy and hormones must be true because Quinn has been acting like a Grade-A bitch lately. He leans down next to Rachel, who won't look him in the eye. "Then I'm glad you're doing it for them. Glee needs you."

Rachel snaps her head up at the comment. How can he possible be such an ass one week, using her for his own benefit, and then say something sweet like that. "Well, I need Glee. It's going to be my ticket out of this town and to something good." Finn just nods his head, the glazed expression back, before walking over to his desk. Oh, how she used to think that expression was kinda cute. As Rachel looked back to the other corner to watch Finn sit down she was greeted by a death glare from Quinn. If looks could kill she would be six feet under right now.

Rachel turned back to the front and as she reaches into her backpack for her notebook she takes a deep breathe. She really was sick of the way people treated her, especially the new Glee members. They may be cheerleaders and jocks, but everyone needed to just suck it up and work together if they had any chance of winning. And as much at it hurt for her to admit it, she really wanted them to win so that Finn could get the scholarship that he wanted so badly. After placing her pen down neatly on her notebook, she sat up, clasped her hands on her desk, and lifted her chin a notch higher. Her emotions were tapped down now and she was back to the Rachel Berry that everyone in this school knew.

* * *

After making it through the first few periods, Rachel was exhausted and couldn't stand the thought of keeping up the charade during lunch. Thank God she knew that the choir room was free this period. Setting her bag down next to the piano, she slid onto the bench and danced her fingers across the keys. There was just something about music that brought a calmness to her soul. Music made sense, she understood it. Her fingers began to automatically play what had become one of her favorite songs this past weekend. She went with it and began singing…

_Vague sound of rain,_

_Pierces through my song again_

_But I get distracted by the way his toes move when he plays_

_So I let it burn._

Most people thought that Rachel Berry didn't care about other people's feelings, not after the way that she went after Finn knowing full well that he was with Quinn. But damn it, she did have feelings, and until a few days ago most of them were for Finn. Yeah, a part of her really did feel bad about what she was doing to Quinn, but he actually paid attention to her like she was an actual person, not some freak. So she actually let her real feeling show for once.

_I just poured my hear out_

_There's bits of it on the floor_

_And I take what's left of it and rinse it under cold water_

_And call him up for more._

But those feelings disappeared the minute she heard about the baby, put together the pieces, and figured out why Finn had paid so much attention to her last week. Fine, not all of the feelings. When you feel something that strong you can't just douse the flame, there's still a pile of embers hanging on. But the damage was done.

_And I say 'Baby, yes I feel so stupid to call you, but I'm lonely_

_And I don't think it when you said you couldn't love me_

_And I thought maybe if I kissed the way you do you'd feel it too_

_And he said I'm sorry_

_So sorry_

_I'm sorry_

_So sorry._

It was her worst nightmare come to life. She would show someone who she really was and they would let her know that she wasn't good enough. Apparently she just can't compete with Quinn.

* * *

He just couldn't get away from her. Puck came to the choir room because he was sick of seeing Finn and Quinn all over each other at lunch, but he just can't catch a break today.

_He grabs my wrist_

_As my fingers turn into angry fists_

_And I whisper, 'Why can't you love me, I'll change for you_

_I'll play the part.'_

He tried to talk to Quinn again earlier today. He knew that he would be a good dad, and he deserved every right to be one. But she just looked him right in the eye and told him that he just wasn't good enough, no matter what he did or who he was. And if he really wanted to be a good dad, then he would step back, keep his mouth shut, and let her and Finn become a family.

_And I say, 'Baby, yes I feel stupid to call you, but I'm lonely_

_And I don't think you meant it when you said you couldn't love me_

_And I thought maybe if I kissed the way you do you'd feel it too.'_

Instead of leaving right away Puck stood in the doorway and listened to Rachel sing. That girl had a voice and right now it hit him harder that he wanted to admit. She was really starting to get under his skin, and Noah Puckerman didn't let anyone get under his skin.

_He said 'I'm sorry_

_So sorry_

_I'm sorry_

_I am sorry._

Rachel had lost herself in the song but got pulled back to reality at the sound of the choir door slamming shut. She looking back hoping to see who was there, but they were already gone. She turned back to the piano but she couldn't finish the song. It had been so cathartic letting it out, but the moment was gone. All the moments were gone.

* * *

The song is Sorry by Maria Mena-beautiful song!


	3. Chapter 3

**Near to you**

**

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**

First off, thank you so much to those of you have reviewed or added this story to your alerts/favorites, and second, sorry to you for taking so freakin' long to get this up. It was just not turning out the way I wanted it to, but I wanted to put something up tonight. So without any further ado…

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Rachel left the choir room a few minutes before lunch was over, she wanted to grab her music for Glee, but mostly she didn't want all of the Glee members to think that she had been hiding out in the choir room during lunch. As she walked back into the room she noticed that it was just Mercedes, Tina, Kurt, and Artie. A smile came to her face, and for the first time today it was a real smile, not the Rachel Berry perky smile that she had perfected over the years.

"Hey Rachel!" Mercedes was the first to notice her.

"Hey guys!" Just as she sat down next to them the jocks and cheerleaders came in, sans Finn and Quinn. Mr. Shuester walked in right behind them holding a stack of papers.

"Hey everybody. I want to start off today saying what a great job you guys did the other night. I was really proud of you. For today we are going to try something new, something with a bit more rock. I was going to have Rachel and Finn try the leads for this one, but since Finn and Quinn are talking to Miss Pillsbury right now, I want Puck to take the lead. As he started handing the parts out Rachel scanned down her sheet.

"Are you sure about this Mr. Shue?"

"Wow, thanks Rach. It means so much to me that you want to sing with me." Puck placed his hand against his heart to top off his barb.

"I thought that we were going to start singing songs that were a bit more, shall we say, contemporary. Whereas this song is old, it's older than some of us."

"We need to showcase our range, it's one of our strengths. And _I Hate Myself For Loving You_ is the perfect way to add in some eighties rock into our repertoire. So, prove me right."

"Alright, but just for the record I do not think that this is the best way to showcase my voice." Rachel takes a deep breathe as Mr. Shue signals the band to start playing the song. The truth was she absolutely loved this song, but she did not feel that that young ingénue that she was should admit to loving the Joan Jett song.

As Puck began singing the beginning of the song Rachel was shocked at how well he sounded. She had heard him sing before, but the background vocals that he had been given up to that point did not do him justice. As Rachel picked it up a few lines later everyone in the group nodded their heads to one another. This sounded good, this sounded _really good_.

As the group finished singing the last line Mr. Shcue began clapping. "I think you guys more than proved me right. That sounded amazing. We are going to work in somewhere for Sectionals so practice, practice, practice it. And congratulations Puck, you just got yourself the lead." A smile, albeit cocky smile-alright, fine, it was one of his trademark smirks that crept across Puck's face. He joined Glee purely to keep an eye on the whole Rachel/Finn/Quinn thing, but he's always loved singing and playing the guitar so getting this lead felt incredible.

As the whole group was clapping for Puck, the door to the choir room opened and in walked Finn and Quinn. "Hey guys. Here are your parts for the new song that we will be singing for Sectionals. Let's run through it one more time and then we'll get started on some choreography for it."

As Finn got his paper he looked down expecting to see the lead. He was kinda pissed that it wasn't the lead, but he wasn't going to throw a Diva fit like Rachel did when Tina got the lead instead of her. As soon as Puck started singing Finn's head whipped up from the sheet music in his hand. Why the hell did Puck have the lead? Finn still didn't get why Puck even joined Glee. Yeah, chicks dig a guy who can play the guitar, but play a guitar in a band, not in Glee.

After Mr. Schue had everyone run through the new number with some basic choreography he had the group sit down. "Alright guys. Sectionals is only three weeks away after this weekend and it's going to be our first show outside of McKinley High School so we have to be on the top of our game. This means that I want you to practice any chance you can get. Rachel and Puck, I want you two to get some practice in together for '_I Hate Myself For Loving You_'. As for the rest of you, I'm going to be bringing new songs in all week long, so if you want a lead, prove it to me at practice. That's it for me, you guys can leave a little early."

Rachel grabbed her purse and walked over to where Puck was sitting with Matt and Mike. "I know that you have prior obligations after school, with football practice and all, but if you want to get together after that we can meet in the auditorium."

"Whatever." Puck grabbed his bag and walked out of the choir room followed by Matt and Mike. He was psyched about the duet…he was _not_ psyched about practicing with Rachel. She had an amazing voice and she's not as annoying as he thought she was before, but she still acted stuck up and used too way too many words. He also thinks that she is the reason that Finn keeps asking him what certain words, like cliché, mean.

Thanks to the fact that Cabaret is no longer a go, the auditorium is now free after school, so Rachel decided to wait in there while Puck has football practice. She probably use the time to practice for her MySpace video, this week was suppose to be music from Chicago, but she didn't feel like belting out _All That Jazz_ right now. Even if it was worse than being poor, right now she kinda just wanted to be anonymous. If she was anonymous then she wouldn't be getting those slurpies thrown in her face every morning, she wouldn't get eggs thrown at her and her house, there wouldn't be pornographic pictures of her drawn in the bathrooms, she wouldn't get the death glares from Quinn and the other Cheerios, and everyone wouldn't think of her as some self-centered perfectionist. Well okay, she was a bit of a perfectionist, but she wasn't completely self-centered, it was more like her default setting. Not being a Cheerio or girlfriend of a jock, she was a weak one in the herd. And early on she learned that if the weak ones don't look after themselves they get killed, so she stood her ground and made sure that she got deserved. Although lately she was beginning to feel like she's been mauled-heartbreak sucked.

* * *

At some point in time while waiting for Puck, Rachel started absently minded playing on the piano. It isn't until she's been playing for nearly ten minutes does it finally click what song she's been playing, _Dancing Dirt Into the Snow_ by Missy Higgins. Actually most songs of Missy Higgins were making appearances in her playlists this past weekend.

_Alone you find yourself just hanging,_

_And to fill the hole you cling to all that seems,_

_To hide the little girl crying,_

_Underneath the rage that you let others see._

Puck walked through the stage doors but stopped as he heard Rachel at the piano. He quietly shut the door and stood in the shadows of the wings.

'_Cause you're dancing dirt into the snow_

_While others look at you on show._

_You're dancing dirt into the snow_

_While all around you people grow_

_And watch you bleed_

_And watch you bleed._

There was something that her voice did to him. And what did she have with singing sad songs at the piano when no one else was around? He had to cut this out, now. He walked back over to the door and noisily opened it and acted like he had just walked in.

"So, are you ready to practice?"

"Yeah. I was just making sure that the piano was ah…in tune. It is. Do you want to warm up or anything?"

"No, let's just practice this a few times so that we can get out of here." Rachel just turned back towards the piano and began playing. This girl was starting to make him insane, and not so much because she was annoying, but more because he was trying to figure her out.

After they finished the first run through Rachel dropped her hands to her lap and turned to Puck. "I must say Noah that you are very talented."

"Don't call me Noah."

"You know you could have just said thank you and dropped the attitude. Anyways, why don't you go by Noah anymore, you used to back in elementary school?" Before Puck could even answer Rachel held up her hand. "I know, none of my business. So that last one sounded pretty good, but I think we need to harmonize a bit better on the choruses. Try to hit just a note higher."

The next time they sang it, it sounded great. "Puck that sounded amazing. No, it was perfect. We are going to kill at Sectionals with this." Rachel beamed at him across the piano and Puck actually let a real smile out. Rachel Berry didn't hold her opinion back, so he knew that when she said that it was good, it was good. And if felt so good to hear her say that he was good. No, that totally came out wrong, he meant that it was just nice that someone, anyone, no one in particular, thought that he could sing. Whatever.

Rachel watched the emotions flit across his face as his smile was replaced by a scowl.

"Good, then let's just do it one more time." Puck really meant to say then let's stop for the day, but somehow let's do it one more time came out. Whatever, what was a few more minutes of his life?

* * *

OK, so after seeing the commercial last week for Sunday Night Football where Faith Hill sings the remake of I Hate Myself for Loving You I wanted to add the actual song in here (I love that song!). Dancing Dirt into the Snow by Missy Higgins was also partially featured- another beautiful song! And since I have no singing or musical talent whatsoever, please ignore any screw ups with that. And please, please, please let me know what you think.


	4. Chapter 4

Near to you

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Thanks again for all of the reviews and alerts/favorites! And FYI, the song at the end is The Fray's version which sounds _so_ amazing!!!

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Chapter 4

As Rachel opened up her locker before school the next day she felt someone standing behind her. As she looked over her shoulder she saw Finn standing there staring at her. "Hello Finn."

"Ah, hey. So, how was practice yesterday?"

"It went quite well, but you would know that, you were there. Although you did show up late, is everything okay?"

"Not that practice, your practice with Puck. He didn't do anything did he?"

"Of course he didn't do anything. And our practice went great, absolutely fantastic. We are going to do so good at Sectionals with it, it's our best song yet. Of course it's not the first song that you would expect out of Glee, but I think that makes it that much better." The truth was Rachel had no idea how to describe yesterdays practice. Yes, Rachel Berry, _Rachel freakin' Berry_, was at a total and complete loss for words as to how yesterdays practice went. The song did sound great, but there was something about that practice last night that made her skin tingle. She just couldn't figure out if it was a good kind of tingle, or the kind of skin tingling meth addicts get when they're high and think there are bugs under the skin.

"Well…good." Rachel shut her locker and walked away from Finn. Although a part of her really wanted to talk with Finn right know-he looked so good in that dark blue polo-a part of her really wanted to get out of that hall. She knew that every morning before first period Finn meets Quinn at her locker, which happens to be near Rachel's locker, and right now she really doesn't want to witness that little scene.

Just as she makes it to the end of the hall she notices Puck and a couple of the football players. As Rachel takes a breath her gaze automatically zeros in on their hands, which are currently sans Slurpies. Rachel lifted her head and looked Puck in the eye, lifting an eyebrow in question.

Puck shrugged his shoulders and put on a look of pure innocence. Rachel wasn't sure which shocked her more, the fact that they had no Slurpies, or the fact the Puck was actually capable of looking innocent.

* * *

As Rachel walked into the choir room for Glee practice she was surprised to see she was the last one to show up. So okay, she may have taken the really long way to go to her locker to grab her folder she used to hold her Glee music, and she may have taken extra long in the bathroom fixing her hair, and she may have then taken the scenic route to the choir room, but she didn't think that it really took her _that_ long.

Everyone was already in their spots for _I Hate Myself for Loving You_ so Rachel quickly set her bag down and walked over to her spot. As much as she loved it, she was really starting to hate performing it with Puck. Those damn tingles started happening again.

"Yes, that was good. But we need great. Puck and Rachel, keep it up that sounded good, but we need to clean up the choreography. Kurt you were too early on the second course, and Finn, you're suppose to turn to the right, not the left."

"Sorry Mr. Schue. The whole right and left thing confuses me sometimes." Finn did his sheepish look coupled with the grin that usually melted Rachel's heart. But Rachel was too preoccupied with the fact that she thinks Puck skimmed her ass on purpose the last time they practiced to even hear Finn's comment.

* * *

After Glee practice Puck waited outside the choir room for Quinn. It wasn't going to be long before the whole school knew that she was pregnant, and she can't continue lying about the father. As she walks out he touched her elbow, "Hey, we need to talk." Quinn is about to tell him no, but when she sees that look of determination in his eyes she just follows him down the hall.

"Enough is enough Quinn. I'm not going to sit back and watch you lie to everyone. You either tell Finn that he is not the father, or I will."

"It doesn't really matter who everyone thinks the father is-I'm going to give the baby up for adoption. So you are not going to have anything to do with this baby, before or after it's born. Got it?"

"No, here's the thing Quinn. I'll give you one week. If Finn doesn't know by then, then I'm telling him. It's your choice."

"Why would you want to tell him? You think that he's not going to mind that his best friend knocked up his girlfriend. I don't think so. So why don't you just save us all a bunch on trouble and keep your mouth shut." Quinn turned on her heel and walked down the hall.

* * *

While Rachel had been waiting for Puck to practice she sat down on the steps that lead off the stage to the side of the auditorium and pulled out her laptop to check her MySpace page. Big surprise, the Cheerios along with just about everyone else at school had left messages on her page, none of them commending her wonderful voice. She thought that after a while she would build up immunity to all the spiteful comments, but somehow they almost seemed to hurt a little more each time. She shut her laptop and leaned her head against the wall. She promised herself she would not cry. Not here and not now at least. But try as she may, she just couldn't stop the tears that started to slip down her cheeks. She heard Puck walk onto the stage so she started to dry her face and catch her breathe. Before she had a chance to stand up and say anything she heard him throw his bags down and pull his guitar out of the case.

Puck's day turned to shit when he talked to Quinn earlier today, and it had just gone downhill from there. Before football practice Finn showed him the picture from the ultrasound. It was then that Puck learned that Quinn was having a little girl, his little girl. And now he was stuck practice with Rachel, who surprisingly wasn't even here yet. He pulled out his guitar and started playing.

_In the night, I hear 'em talk_

_The coldest story ever told_

_Somewhere far along this road_

_He lost his soul_

_To a woman so heartless._

_How could you be so heartless?_

_How could you be so heartless?_

How could Quinn not have told him earlier? She could have told him that they were going to have a girl and that she appeared to be healthy. He had to hear it from Finn, his best friends who thought that he was the father. He meant what he told her earlier though, if she didn't tell Finn the truth, then he was. He know what he did was a total dick move, but he's seen how much pressure Finn has been under lately and he's not that big of a dick to shove his consequences onto someone else. Especially when that someone else was his best friend.

_How could you be so,_

_Cold as the winter wind when it breeze, yo_

_Just remember that you talking to me though_

_You need to watch the way you talking to me, yo_

_I mean, after all the things that we been through_

_I mean, after all the things we got into_

_You know of some things that you ain't told me_

_I did some things but that's the old me_

_Now you wanna get me back_

_And you gonna show me_

_So you walk around like you don't know me_

_You got a new friend, I got homies_

_But in the end, it's still so lonely._

Puck could still remember when he was nine and his father walked out on him and his mom. He remembered how he could hear his mom crying herself to sleep, how she would work two jobs just to make sure that they had enough to make it through, how he promised himself that he would never be _that_ man, he would never abandon his family.

_In the night, I hear 'em talk_

_The coldest story ever told_

_Somewhere far along this road_

_He lost his soul_

_To a woman so heartless_

_How could you be so heartless?_

_How could you be so heartless?_

As Puck heard a noise over on the side of the stage he stopped singing and looked around stage right. He saw someone sitting in the shadow on the steps.

"Don't stop." Rachel stepped out of the shadows and leaned against the wall. Puck stared at her for a minute before continuing.

_How could you be so Dr. Evil, you bringin' out a side of me that I don't know_

_I decided we weren't gonna speak so_

_Why we up 3AM on the phone_

_Why does she be so mad at me fo'_

_Homie I don't know, she's hot and cold_

_I won't stop, won't mess my groove up_

'_Cause I already know how this thing go_

_You run and tell your friends you're leaving me_

_They say that they don't see what you see in me_

_You wait a couple months then you gonna see_

_You'll never find nobody better than me._

Puck still wasn't sure why he continued to sing after he knew that he wasn't alone, but something in him told him that it was fine. It was one thing to sing in front of other people when it was part of performance or rehearsal, but it was something totally different when you were singing to release emotion.

_In the night, I hear 'em talk_

_The coldest story ever told_

_Somewhere far along this road_

_He lost his soul_

_To a woman so heartless_

_How could you be so heartless?_

_How could you be so heartless?_

Rachel was shocked. She didn't really expect him to continue singing and she also couldn't believe how well it sounded. She'd never heard him sing like this-with such emotion. There was more to Noah Puckerman than met the eye, and that didn't just shock her, it scared the hell out of her.

_Talkin', talkin', talkin', talk_

_Baby let's just knock it off_

_They don't know what we been through_

_They don't know 'bout me and you_

_So I got something new to see_

_And you just gonna keep hatin' me_

_And we just gonna be enemies_

_I know you can't believe_

_I could just leave it wrong_

_And you can't make it right_

_So I'm gonna take off tonight_

_Into the night._

Puck lifted his gaze and stared at Rachel as he finished the song. What was it with this girl that threw him so far off balance?

_In the night, I hear 'em talk_

_The coldest story ever told_

_Somewhere far along this road_

_He lost his soul_

_To a woman so heartless_

_How could you be so heartless?_

_How could you be so _

_In the night, I hear 'em talk_

_The coldest story ever told_

_Somewhere far along this road_

_He lost his soul_

_To a woman so heartless_

_How could you be so heartless?_

_How could you be so heartless?_

Rachel just sent Puck a small smile before grabbing her bags and walking over to the piano. A million questions were racing through her mind and she wanted to ask them all, but she knew that that would be pushing it. She pulled out her iPod and speakers and set them on the piano.

"I recorded the music so that we can practice the song with the choreography."

Puck was only able to nod his head in acknowledgement as he put his guitar away. He was prepared to be peppered with questions, after all when was Rachel Berry ever silent with her opinions? So when she went right into practice mode it totally took him by surprise. Not that he was complaining about a quiet Rachel, but a quiet Rachel kinda made him nervous.

Mr. Schue choreographed the end of the routine so that when they both sang the last line Rachel and Puck both pushed out of the embrace that they were in and walked to opposite sides of the stage before looking at each other on the last note. And while a part of Rachel was wishing that Puck had just followed those steps, another part of her, and she hates to admit that it is a much bigger part of her, is really glad that he isn't. When she tries to push away from him he just grabs her hips and pulls her flush up against him.

Puck has no clue what he is doing, but now that he has Rachel in his arms he doesn't want to let her go. With his hands on her hips he can't help but notice how small she is compared to him. How can so much attitude and such a big voice come from that little thing. As he looks down at her he notices how hard she is breathing –and it's then that he notices that he is too. Screw it, he figures, before he dips down and kisses her.

* * *

Thanks again for reading!!! And please let me know what you think!!!


	5. Chapter 5

Near to you

* * *

Thanks again for all of the reviews and alerts/favorites!

* * *

Chapter 5

Rachel's morning started out bad, and just got worse. She somehow slept threw her alarm, then she forgot to put the lid on her blender when she made her protein shake, and by the time she was done cleaning up that mess she didn't have anytime to run on her elliptical. She was hoping to get to school early so that she could run to her locker and then spend some time in the choir room because she wanted to practice some songs for Glee, not because she wanted to put off seeing Puck for as long as she could. Guess it's just going to be one of those days today. After she grabs her books and shuts her locker she turns to see Finn making out with Quinn. Yup, today was definitely going to be one of _those_ days. Just as she walks past them she's greeted with a nice, ice cold, Slushy facial-cherry from the smell of it. She opens her eyes to see Puck with the empty cup in hand and a handful of football players laughing as they walk past her. She licks her lips-yup, it's cherry. She changes directions and heads into the bathroom to cleanup a little before going to the girl's locker room to change.

Puck felt like more of an ass than usual, which was saying a lot. But it was her own fault damn it. Why the hell did she have to taste so damn good? He brushed his teeth three times last night, and used mouthwash, and he still swears that he can taste her this morning. Fuck, she tasted sweeter than the chocolate cake his mom always makes for his birthday. And those damn plaid skirts that she's always wearing-it reminds him of a Catholic schoolgirl, a naughty Catholic schoolgirl. And when she got that diva attitude thing, it turned him on to no end. It's all her fault! So, he was just going to have to counteract that by being a major ass instead of just an ass.

* * *

For once Rachel was actually somewhat dreading Glee practice. It was going to take every ounce of her acting skills to be able to get through _I Hate Myself for Loving You_ without completely freaking out. Her and Puck were only able to practice once yesterday and that one had ended in _the incident_ as she is now referring to it. She can't call it the kiss, no it was so much more that a kiss. In the auditorium and the bowling alley with Finn, those were kisses. Yesterday with Puck, that was more of an even if I could crawl under your skin I would still not be close enough to you. She thought the tingles were bad before, now she felt like her entire body was on fire when she was near him.

She took a deep breath before opening the door and walking into the choir room. She finally let it out when she noticed that Puck, Mike, and Matt weren't there yet. She sat down next to Mercedes and Kurt who were arguing over what colors are going to be hot this winter. Rachel was actually trying to follow the conversation, but the second she heard the door open it took all of her energy not to watch him walk in. Mr. Schue came walking in right behind the football players so Rachel got the first break of the day since there wasn't going to be any down time with her and Puck together in the same room.

"Alright guys, let's get started right away by working on _I Hate Myself for Loving You_." And her break was short lived.

Standing in his beginning position on the opposite side of the room Puck takes a deep breath before finally looking over at Rachel. She's glaring right back at him and he has a feeling that it's got nothing to do with getting into character. Part way through the song he skims her ass as they walk around one another and from the look in her eyes she knows that he did it on purpose. Shit, he was so going to get an earful from her later, but he still maintains that it is her fault for wearing those damn skirts. As he walks over to the right to join the guys he notices the glare that Finn's giving him. Looks like Rachel wasn't the only one to notice that little slip.

Puck is actually able to keep his hands to himself for the rest of the routine, except for the areas that it was choreographed And so maybe he may have stayed in contact for a few extra counts, but he was just getting into character, I mean, isn't that what he is suppose to do in show choir. In their last embrace Puck squeezes Rachel's hip and winks at her, causing her to glare at him and shove him harder than normal. She was going so going to kill him later. Thank God her dads made her go to those self-defense classes.

* * *

Rachel decided to go home after school and get her workout in while Puck was at football practice. After the crappy day that she had she needed to get some frustration out, and it looks like the only way was to blast some Celine Dion on her iPod and run her little heart out on her elliptical. Unfortunately, she was only half way through her playlist when she looked at the time and realized she was running way behind schedule. She only had time to take a shower and throw on some jeans and a sweater before grabbing her purse and running to her car. She really did not want to be late for kicking his ass.

She walked, alright more like ran, onto the stage from stage right just as Puck sauntered in from stage left.

"Didn't think you owned jeans Berry."

"Didn't think your face could look any worse Puckerman." As Puck looked her over Rachel studied the shiner that was starting to show on his left eye. Damn. She was ready to chew him out for just about everything that happened within the last twenty-four hours, but seeing his eye like that made every protective, mama bear instinct in her go on high alert. She was in trouble.

"C'mon Berry, you know you love my face just as much as you love my body." OK, so it's looking a lot more likely now that he will get his ass chewed out, she'll just wait a considerate amount of time due to his injury.

"Are you okay? Do you want me to get some ice for your eye before we practice? And what the hell happened anyway?"

"What do you think happened; I just came back from football practice. You know, that sport were people get tackled at full force."

"First off, you wear helmets-whose fist can get through that? Second, you're the Flanker, you're not even on the line of scrimmage-so who was it that caught up to you and tackled you? Cause I know no one on the McKinley High Football team could do that one."

"Wow, so are you like my own little football stalker-slash-cheerleader now? And how do you know what a Flanker is much less that that's the position I play?"

She was really getting annoyed at how evasive he was being. Why wouldn't he just answer the damn question. She crossed her arms and glared at him, "Oh, cut the crap Puck and just answer the question."

Puck's eyebrows shot up, even though it made his eye throb. But he couldn't help it, this was so not the Rachel Berry that he knew.

Rachel knew the second that she saw the surprise in his eyes that she was letting her guard come crashing down. What was it with him? She was able to keep up the façade that she's perfected around everyone, even Finn, but when she gets around Noah Puckerman it's like her brain short circuits and the filter between her brain and mouth just totally quits.

"You're not answering my question either."

"I asked first."

"You're really going to try to use Kindergarten logic on me? I thought you were smarter than that Berry."

"Just because it's Kindergarten logic doesn't make it any less logical. Kindergarten logic is smart logic. So…who hit you and why did they hit you?"

"You're never going to quit are you?"

"Nope. Stubborn as a bull."

"Fine, it was Finn."

"Finn?! What did he hit you for? You two are friends, best friends."  
"Yeah, we had a bit of a misunderstanding.

"About…?"

"You." Puck moved over to the piano to drop his bag. Rachel followed suit and set up her iPod and speaker on the piano before sitting down on the bench.

"Me? How can you two have a misunderstanding about me? Is he pissed that he didn't get the solo? You deserve that solo Puck, don't let him tell you any different."

"He saw something at Glee today that he didn't like." A huge smile broke out across her face because she just _knew_ what it was about now.

"He saw you skim my ass didn't he?"

"Yup. I knew I was going to get it from you for that, just wasn't expecting to get a shiner from him."

"Oh, you were so going to get it from me for that, that and a whole lot more. But I am kinda liking the job he did on you so I might just hold back until you piss me off again."

"You're such an angel Berry."

"I know. I have some Advil in my bag. Want some before we start?"

"No, I already took some before I left the locker room, but thanks." Puck walked over to his beginning spot, which Rachel rightly took to mean that their little conversation was over. She started the music before walking over to her spot. "And don't think we're done with the whole knowing about football talk." Rachel took a deep breath as Puck started singing. Shit. She was really hoping he was going to forget about that. There was no way that she wanted Noah Puckerman to know that Rachel Berry was a fan of football.

Somehow, although if you were to ask her she would say it is because of her exceptional talent as a singer and actress, Rachel made it through the routine. Well almost. At the last embrace Puck firmly held her hips as he smirked down at her. Just as he was leaning down they heard someone from stage left.

"Hey guys. Hope I'm not interrupting or anything." Puck glares over his shoulder at Finn who's walking out of the shadows. He drops one hand off of her hip, but slips the other arm around her waist pulling her next to him as he turns to face Finn.

"Actually you are interrupting. What are you doing her Finn?"

"I came to see if Rachel wanted to practice the new song Mr. Schue handed out today so that we can tryout tomorrow for the leads."

"Rachel can't. We're practicing that after were done practicing this one. We're trying out for the leads tomorrow."

"OK. Then I'll just wait and watch you two while you practice, then me and Rachel can practice after."

"She doesn't have time Finn. She's with me." Rachel kept volleying her gaze between the two guys. She was so confused she wasn't sure whether to be flattered or pissed off. Although she was pretty sure that this thing between them went deeper than the song, she decided that she almost liked two guys fighting like this over her. Almost.

"Knock it off, I'm right here. Look Finn, I'm sorry, but I only have enough time tonight to practice with Puck before I need to get home and make dinner tonight." Finn just continued to stare at them before bending down to grab his bag.

"Alright. See you tomorrow Rachel."

As the doors to the auditorium shut Rachel pulled out of Puck's arm and walks over to the piano to stop her iPod.

"If you want we can go on ahead and practice the new song now. There's not much else we can do with _I Hate Myself for Loving You_. Our choreography is clean and our harmonies are on. We don't really need to practice it that much anymore."

"We don't have to. If you need to get home to make dinner you can go. I just said that 'cause I was still pissed at Finn for hitting me."

"I just said that because I was still pissed at him for what he did last week. I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

Puck didn't want the practice to be over. He really liked singing with Rachel, and to be honest, there little verbal sparring match earlier was pretty fun. "Wait. We can still practice. I mean, what the hell, we sound pretty good together so why don't we try out together."

Rachel let out a quiet sigh of relief-she didn't want practice to be over either. "OK." Puck grabbed his guitar as Rachel sat down at the piano. "You take the beginning part that Kenny Chesney sings and I'll take the last part that's Dave Matthews."

"We sing the choruses together though." Puck added in before starting the song on his guitar.

_So damn easy to say that life's so hard_

_Everybody's got their share of battle scars_

_As for me, I's like to thank my lucky stars_

_That I'm alive and well._

As Rachel picked up the song on the piano she looked up at Puck who sent her a smile. She hated to admit, but he sounded good, and looked better. What was it with the bad boys that just drove girls crazy?

_It's be easy to add up all the pain_

_And all the dreams you sat and watched go up in flames_

_Dwell on the wreckage as it smolders in the rain_

As Rachel continues to play she watches Puck play the guitar. That man has got some talented fingers that Rachel would not mind experiencing. Crap. She doesn't mean that. She means, simply, that she would not mind experiencing him as a guitar player to accompany her. Yeah, that sounds okay.

_But not me, I'm alive_

_And today you know that's good enough for me_

_Breathing in and out's a blessing can't you see?_

_Today's the first day of the rest of my life_

_And I'm alive, and well_

_Yeah I'm alive, and well._

As Rachel picked up in the chorus she can't help but fall right into the song. There is just something about singing that makes her feel like she belongs, like she has a place and meaning.

_Stars are dancin' on the water here tonight_

_It's good for the soul and there's not a soul in sight_

_This boat has caught it's wind and brought me back to life_

Puck watched as Rachel shut her eyes to sing her verse. He can understand why Finn was so protective of Rachel earlier. He was right, she is special. She might still be a talkative little diva, but the more time he's spent around her the more he feels like he's gotten to know the real Rachel. And the real Rachel was something.

_Now I'm alive, and well_

_And today, you know that's good enough for me_

_Breathing in and out's a blessing can't you see?_

_Today's the first day of the rest of my life_

_And I'm alive, and well_

_Yeah I'm alive, and well._

As they finished out the last chorus they both looked into each other's eyes.

"You were right. We do sound pretty good together. And trust me, I know talent when I see it. It's that whole takes one to know one thing. See, Kindergarten logic wins again." Puck can't help but let out a laugh at that one. When she toned down the whole freak factor, he almost liked her.

She put her iPod and sheet music back in her bag before getting up and walking to the door. Just as she opened it she turned around. "Oh, and by the way Puck, if you give me one of your Slurpy facials tomorrow, you're on your own for tryouts."

As she walks through the door she hears him shout back, "Only if you tell me about the football thing."

* * *

Song: I'm Alive by Kenny Chesney with Dave Matthews-another beautiful song!

Hope you enjoyed! Please let me know what you thought!!!


	6. Chapter 6

Near to you

Thanks again for your reviews and to everyone else who has added this story to your alerts/favorites! I really, _really_ appreciate it! And sorry for the delay, I had the brilliant idea (what the hell was I thinking?!) to have a song in each chapter that would go along with the story, so I've picked out all of the songs and have a semi-outline floating around in my head so hopefully the chapters will be popping up a bit more regularly now. And enough with my rambling…

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Chapter 6 - Wanted

Rachel barely made it into her first period before the final bell rang – a first for her. So she may have changed her outfit six times this morning, but that was purely because she was going to audition this afternoon during Glee practice, it had absolutely nothing to do with who she would be auditioning with. And the skirt that she finally decided on was a perfectly acceptable length, it was not short. And her heels where-ok, so her heels made her legs look killer-but there is nothing wrong with that because it's not like she wants them to look killer for a particular reason or person. Rachel Berry simply believes in looking her best everyday. And perhaps especially on those days, like today, when she was going to be trying out with an über sexy jock, not that she would ever admit that.

As she left Math Finn caught up with her in the hall. "Hey. So are you and Puck still trying out today?"

"Yeah, we sounded pretty good last night. By the way, why did you hit him yesterday after football practice?"

"Oh that. It was just a misunderstanding. Listen Rachel, I think you should be careful. Puck's my friend and all, but I don't think you should be hanging out with him. He's not exactly a good guy."

A million thoughts were going through her mind, most having to do with the fact that both Puck and Finn were not giving her a straight answer to that question, but somehow she totally let the wrong one slip.

"Who said I don't want a bad boy?" The moment that she saw Finn's eyes widen she knew there was going to be no way to backtrack her way out of that one, even knowing how naïve Finn could be, so she spun on her heel and walked down the hall. Crap. She was really hoping he would just rack that up to being a diva moment or something, but knowing the way that her week had been going, that was not going to happen.

* * *

After the group finished practicing _Don't Stop Believing_ Mr. Schue had them all take a seat. "OK, so who wants to try out for the song that was handed out yesterday?" Before Rachel even had a chance to shoot her arm up, Puck stood up and grabbed his guitar.

"Rachel and I want to try out."

"Great. Let's hear it." Rachel stood up and smoothed her skirt before walking over to the piano. As she sat down on the bench she looked up at Puck who gave her a smile as he started playing.

After they finished Rachel stood up as everyone clapped. Puck took off his guitar and put his free arm around Rachel and led her back to the first step where they sat down next to each other, both still riding the high from singing together. Mr. Schue walked back over to the piano.

"Anyone else want to try out?"

"I do." Finn grabbed the sheet music from his bag before standing up and walking to the front. He had practiced the night before hoping that he would be able to beat out Puck for the male lead. As Mr. Schue accompanied Finn on the guitar, Rachel listened with a critical ear and was surprised at how well he sounded. Looks like her and Puck might actually have a bit of competition. No one else auditioned for the leads of the song, so Mr. Schue let everyone go early and Puck turned to Rachel.

"Practice today?"

"Can't. I have to run to Dayton after school today."

"I can't tomorrow cause of the football game. You gonna come cheer me on?"

Finn walked up to them with Quinn trailing on his heels. "Rachel doesn't come to the football games."

Puck threw his arm around Rachel's shoulder and pulled her against his side. "That's just cause she hasn't had anyone worth cheering for yet. Now she can cheer for her Flanker." Rachel lightly elbowed Puck in his side-hard enough to let him know that she thought he was on the verge of being an ass, but not hard enough to make him drop his arm because it fit around her so perfectly.

"What the hell is a Flanker? And besides, me and the other Cheerios cheer for you. Why would you want her to cheer for you?"

"Puck's the Flanker. And I haven't been to any of the football games because I normally have dance on Friday nights, but that class got moved to tonight so there is a possibility of me going. Excuse me, I have to get to my locker." Rachel moved out from under Puck's arm and walked between Finn and Quinn to leave the room. She had remembered hearing before to always leave the audience wanting more, and she thought that this was an apropos time to try it out. That and because she doesn't think that it is appropriate to slap a pregnant woman-and when she was around Quinn too much she had that temptation.

As Puck watched her walk out he had to admit, that girl knew how to mess with someone's mind.

"I don't know what has been going on with you two, but you better not hurt her Puck."

"Leave him alone Finn. Man-hands can take care of herself. Besides, I want ice cream now so lets go."

Puck watched Finn trail after Quinn and although he did feel lucky to not be in the direct line of the bitch-fire, he hated that he wasn't there for the cravings and other things his little girl was making Quinn go through. And he had to admit he really liked the way that both Finn and Quinn were looking pissed when they were talking to him and Rachel, especially after all the shit that Quinn had been putting him through by calling him a Lima loser and telling him he's not good enough to be the father. Maybe the way to get at her was through Rachel.

* * *

After school Rachel ran home to grab her dance bag and a bite to eat. As Rachel got in her car to drive to Dayton she put in the mixed CD that she had made the night before and sang along.

_Painted eyes and empty streets_

_Taking it down_

_Selling perfect tragedies_

_Without a sound_

_Faded roses scattered on the ground_

Driving past the wide open fields Rachel was enveloped with a sense of peace and could concentrate on the events that had filled the past week. Talk about strange things, Finn using her, Puck kissing her, what could possible happen next?

_I will be wanted_

_I will not fall from grace_

_Daylight has waited_

_Just to live upon your face_

_I won't be haunted_

_I will not sleep to dream_

_All that I wanted_

_Has been right in front of me_

She tried to put off the butterflies that she felt when Puck had her arm around her after Glee as just the excitement of seeing Finn look pissed at the thought that she would come to the football game to cheer Puck on. She hated to admit it, but when it came right down to it the butterflies started when Puck smiled at her before their tryout. The thought that she may actually want Puck more than Finn scared the crap out of her. Finn she could handle. Puck, well that was a whole other state of affairs.

_Now that I am coming to_

_Black from the fight_

_Shaking out the dusty blue_

_Into the night_

_And there will be no waving of the white_

Finn made her feel warm and safe. But Puck, well Puck made her heart race and her skin tingle, not to mention the way that her body felt on fire when he would just drape his arm around her shoulder. Just last week she would have said that her and Finn were the perfect duo. But after hearing her and Puck sing this week she knew that it was their voices which sounded amazing together. So was it still Finn, or was it Puck now?

_I will be wanted_

_I will not fall from grace_

_Daylight has waited_

_Just to live upon your face_

_I won't be haunted_

_I will not sleep to dream_

_All that I wanted_

_Has been right in front of me_

With her mind made up she set her sights on Puck. Granted, she might not have a ton of experience (alright so she had close to none) when it came to guys, but Puck was not giving her signals that screamed 'stay away' so she figured she had a shot. Besides, what did she have to loose? After getting daily slurpy facials and hateful comments filling her MySpace page what could the fellow students of McKinley High do to her?

_All the hell just gets me higher than before_

_Now an angel has come knocking on my door_

_To tell me I can fly_

And the two of them had come to some sort of truce throughout the past week. During the practices they both let down their guard a bit and were able to see that the other is not quite the horrible person they they thought them to be. Granted, he did slushy her once this week, but the other three days had been slushy-free, an all-time record for her.

_I will be wanted_

_I will not fall from grace_

_Daylight has waited_

_Just to live upon your face_

_I won't be haunted_

_I will not sleep to dream_

_All that I wanted_

_Has been right in front of me._

* * *

Friday after school Rachel ran home to start getting ready. It was going to be the first high school football game that she had ever been to and she wanted to look the part. Unfortunately with the cold night that they had been having she wasn't going to be able to go with her signature plaid skirt. Now she had to go with a whole new look, and she needed to have an ample amount of time to make she that she executed it well. After all, she had someone to cheer for now.

* * *

Thanks for reading-I would love to know what you thought. The song was Wanted by Holly Brook-great song and great artist.


	7. Chapter 7

Near To You

Thanks again for all of the reviews and alerts/favorites! You guys are awesome!!! Hope you enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Chapter 7 – Take a Bow

Dressed in a pair of skinny jeans, her red halter top, black boots, and her favorite black leather jacket Rachel decided that she was ready. She gave her hair a final spray to make sure that the curls stayed before standing in front of her full length mirror to get the full effect. Damn, she looked hot! Rachel grabbed her purse and overnight bag before hollering a good-bye to her dads as she ran down the stairs. She was meeting Tina over at Mercedes' house. After Glee yesterday the three girls decided that they were going to go show their support to the Glee/Football players and afterward have a sleepover. Since joining Glee they had each decided that they had all misjudged each other-apparently they were not nearly annoying as they had always seemed in the halls and classes.

* * *

As they pulled up to the parking lot Rachel's heart began racing-the parking lot was filled. It was one thing to have planned this all out in her head, something totally different to actually execute it. Visualizing herself looking like sex on a stick, cheering Puck on from the stands as he makes the winning touchdown and then runs up the bleachers to kiss her as everyone cheers was one thing (And yes, she totally knows that that is the cheesy ending in like every other teen movie, but there is a reason that it so popular!), but actually walking into a stadium where she knows that most of the people in the stands would like to throw their drinks at her, something totally different! She was pulled out of her reverie as Mercedes and Tina each grabbed an arm.

"Come on girl, we got some boys to cheer on."

"Y-y-yeah. And they need all the help they can get."

As the three got to the stands they waved at Artie who was sitting with the band before walking over to the student section. Rachel had heard the McKinley High didn't have a very good football team, but she was kinda shocked as to how bad they actually were (and thankful that the other team was just as bad). There was only 15 seconds left in the fourth quarter when Finn threw a pass to Puck who ran for a touchdown. Kurt got the extra point and McKinley won 10-3.

Despite the abysmal performance of the team she had a blast at the game (and she knows that if she were to tell that to Puck he would first tell her that the team may totally suck ass, but he was awesome, and that it was not a performance, it was a game-never, ever, use the words performance and football in the same sentence unless it was about the half-time show). The three girls made there way on to the field to congratulate the team, and only a small part of her was disappointed that it was her making her way onto the field instead of Puck making his way up to her. But all sense of disappointment was lost when Kurt grabbed her arm.

"That can't be Rachel Berry because I do not see a pearl in sight."

"You're lucky. Since you guys won I'll give you a pass for that comment-my pearls are awesome." Rachel wrapped Kurt in a hug. Although he could be a totally diva himself, Rachel was really proud of him. He started off the year being tossed into a dumpster every morning by the football players, and now he's not only the kicker for the team, but he's treated like an actual member of the team.

"So, does the Flanker get a hug too?" Rachel let go of Kurt and turned around to see Puck standing there with his helmet in his hand. She gave him a smirk before reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck.

"Good game Puck." Just as she was about to let go he pulled her a little closer for a second before stepping back.

"You coming to the victory party?"

"We hadn't planned on it. Tina and I are staying over at Mercedes tonight."

"All of you should come. It's at Santana's house which is only a couple of houses down from Mercedes."

Before Rachel could reply they got separated. As the girls were walking back to Mercedes' car Rachel told the girls at the party.

"Oh we gotta go, our Glee boys won that game. And beside Rach, you're hotness tonight should not be wasted on the two of us." Rachel and Tina knew that there was no arguing with Mercedes once she made up her mind so they just nodded their heads in agreement as they climbed into the car. They parked at Mercedes' house and walked over to Santana's where the party was already well underway.

The three girls made their way out back and made their way over to where Kurt was standing. Rachel glanced around but didn't see Puck anywhere. Not like she was looking for him or anything because she was independent and was not really that interested in him at all. It's just that he did make the touchdown and she felt that it was her duty to congratulate him since they were a team now because of Glee (it had absolutely nothing to do with how hot his ass looked in that uniform).

* * *

Puck noticed her the second he stepped in the backyard. She was standing with a couple of the other Glee members, but she was looking off into the distance. He grabbed a drink before walking up next to her.

"Hey. Wanna dance?"

Rachel glanced through the sliding doors to see that the living room had been turned into a dance floor and a mass of people were already in there. What was the harm in dancing with him? "Sure. And congratulations on the game tonight."

Puck put his hand on the small of her back to guide her into the house. "Yeah, I know I'm good."

Rachel smiled at his cockiness and shook her head. As they walked into the house Rachel heard Tik Tok blaring from the speakers. Puck used the hand on the small of her back to pull her around and face him. He put his other hand on the small of her back too and began to move with the music. Rachel put her arms around his neck and Puck pulled her until there was nothing separating them. Rachel gasped as she felt his solid chest against hers and was glad that someone had turned off all the lamps in the room because she knew that the shock that she was feeling was written all over her face.

Puck couldn't hear her gasp over the music but he felt her chest move. He didn't blame her. The things that he was feeling as they moved together were shocking the hell out of him too. He leaned down and gently pressed his lips against hers. It wasn't like the other kiss when they had been practicing. This was soft and slow, an acquaintance of lips. It wasn't until she dragged her fingers down his strip of hair that he tilted his head a little more and deepened the kiss.

* * *

Quinn had been watching Puck and Rachel from the backyard and was not liking what she saw. Granted, she had chosen Finn over Puck, but that didn't mean that she wanted man-hands to be all over him. And what the hell was up with that outfit-it made Rachel Berry actually look like a typical teenager (there was no way that Quinn Fabray would actually admit that she looked hot). But Quinn Fabray was not a quitter. She found a way to separate her from Finn, and she was going to find a way to separate her from Puck. Or at least make her life hell while she did it.

* * *

As Puck and Rachel walked out of the living room and into the kitchen Quinn walked into the house and followed after them.

"Wow, Puck. Since when did you start slummin'?" The entire kitchen got quiet and looked at Puck and Rachel to see their reaction to Quinn's comment.

"Is that the pregnancy hormones talking or just your usual bitchiness?" A gasp broke through the kitchen. Until then only the Glee members knew about the pregnancy, but Puck just let everyone else know too.

Enraged, Quinn took the cup that she was holding and threw the contents on Rachel.

Puck was about to rip Quinn a new one, until he got a whiff of the beer. Why the hell was she drinking when she was pregnant, _with his daughter_? Quinn stormed out of the room and Puck looked at Rachel before going after Quinn. There was no way that he was going to let her hurt his daughter, and she said that he wasn't good enough to be the father. Right about now it looked like he was the only thing that little girl had going for her.

Rachel stood still after the beer had hit her. She was use to the slushy facials, and as much as they sucked, beer facials were a lot worse. She watched with wide eyes as Puck went after Quinn. Why the hell did he go after her when she was the one with beer now dripping off of her? Mercedes and Tina had caught the last part of the Quinn/Puck/Rachel confrontation. Mercedes walked up and grabbed Rachel's arm and led her out of the house with Tine following behind carrying Rachel's purse.

Rachel waited until they got inside of Mercedes' house before she let the tears fall. The two girls ushered her up the stairs and into the bedroom. Mercedes grabbed the bag Rachel had brought and took her into the bathroom. She opened the linen closet and pulled out a couple of towels before leaving the room so that Rachel could get cleaned up.

Rachel had to take a deep breath before she could pull herself together. Tonight she felt like she hit an all time low. She lost Puck (if she ever really had him) to Quinn (because apparently everyone wants Quinn and not her) and got a face full of beer. She really didn't want to know if it could get any worse because she wasn't sure that she could take the answer. Once she had herself pulled together she put her top to soak as she took a shower. After she dried off and got dressed she rung out her top, thanking the fashion powers that be that the beer did not stain it because it is one of her favorite tops and she knows she looks good in it. She made her way back to her room where she found Tina and Mercedes looking through a magazine.

Mercedes stood up and went over to her dresser. "Now, as much as this is going to pain me to say, get your iPod and plug it in. You get to pick the music right now. And feel free to sing to your hearts content. My parents are still out to dinner and people on this street don't really complain about noise. Not that your singing would be considered noise or anything."

Rachel smiled. Mercedes was not known to back peddle if she thought that she was stepping on anyone's toes. As Rachel reached into her purse to grab her iPod she heard her phone beep indicating she had a text message. She couldn't help the curiosity, so she pulled it out and read it. She couldn't help but let out a snort at it before she read it aloud to Mercedes and Tina who were trying, albeit unsuccessfully , to hide their curiosity.

"Sorry for running off. Had something I needed to take care of. Call me."

"Oh hell no, he didn't."

"Don't worry. I've got just the song."

_How about a round of applause_

_A standing ovation_

"Oh thank God. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to make it through a sappy musical song." Rachel smiled at Mercedes before she went back to singing. She heard Mercedes and Tina back her up, but she was too invested in the song to realize how good they sounded together.

_You look so dumb right now_

_Standing outside my house_

_Trying to apologize_

_You're so ugly when you cry_

_Please, just cut it out_

Rachel couldn't believe the text that he had sent. He had something to take care of. You've got to be shitting her. What the hell could he have to take care of that was more important than the fact that beer had just been thrown in the face of the girl that he had been making out with? What was it that Quinn had that she didn't. That's two, _two_, guys now that have chosen Quinn. And two might not sound like a whole lot when taking into consideration the number of males at the school, but given the fact that they are the only ones to show any kind of interest in her (because that creepy blogger does not count because, hello, he is a creepy blogger, he barely counts as a human) two is gigantic.

_Don't tell me you're sorry cause you're not_

_Baby when I know you're only sorry you got caught_

_But you put on quite a show_

_Really had me going_

_Now it's time to go_

_Curtain's finally closing_

_That was quite a show_

_Very entertaining_

_But it's over now_

_Go on and take a bow_

As she was making her way through the song she wasn't sure which hurt more-the fact that he did in fact pick Quinn (who wasn't even available to be picked) or the fact that she had convinced herself that she might have a chance with him. Either way, they both hurt like hell. And she was really starting to get sick of being hurt by boys.

_Grab your clothes and get gone_

_You better hurry up before the sprinklers come on_

_Talkin' about, girl, I love you, you're the one_

_This just looks like a re-run_

_Please, what else is on_

But life knocked you down sometimes, it wasn't about that, it was about whether or not you got back up. And she was going to get back up, and this time, she was going to set her sights on something better. She was going after her original dreams. Rachel Berry on Broadway. She was done with these little dreams about having someone to …, well just to have someone. She would have someone, someday, just not now. And she just needed to accept that and move one. She shut her eyes as she continued, letting that little reality hit her where it really hurt.

_And don't tell me you're sorry cause you're not_

_Baby when I know you're only sorry you got caught_

_But you put on quite a show_

_Really had me going_

_Now it's time to go_

_Curtain's finally closing_

_That was quite a show_

_Very entertaining_

_But it's over now_

_Go on and take a bow_

She finally opened her eyes and glanced over at the mirror above the dresser. She was surprised at what she saw. As her hair had dried it curled, really curled. She never let her hair curl naturally, she always felt like it wasn't, well, perfect. Maybe she did need to tone her perfectionist attitude down just a little and let her hair down (and she meant no pun, because even if it was meant as a pun, it wasn't a good one). And she noticed that she was wrong, she wasn't alone. She did have friends. They may be new, but they were good.

_Oh, and the award for the best liar goes to you_

_For making me believe that you could be faithful to me_

_Let's hear your speech_

Belting out the song was holding the usual cure-all that singing always held for her. It didn't make the problems go away, but it made dealing with them a whole lot easier to deal with. If only those stupid neighbors understood that. She swears, they wouldn't know talent if it knocked them upside the head with a 2x4. They should just be grateful that they have such a talented young lady next door and not someone who sounds worse than a yowling cat that's just had its tail stepped on.

_But you put on quite a show_

_Really had me going_

_Now it's time to go_

_Curtain's finally closing_

_That was quite a show_

_Very entertaining_

_But it's over now_

_Go on and take a bow_

The show was over now and it was time for her to suck it up and move one. A little wiser, a little sadder (not that she was going to let that one on to anyone), but ready for what life had to throw at it. Bring it on baby. Rachel Berry was born ready.

_But it's over now_.

* * *

As if I have to say it, the song was Take a Bow that I'm sure you all remember Rachel nailing (and if you don't I demand you go and find a video of it online right now because it is a must for any Rachel fan!!!). And as always, I would love to know what you thought of it!


	8. Chapter 8

Near to you

Thanks again for all of the reviews and alerts/favorites! You guys are awesome!!! And a special thanks to Anne-I am so glad that you like the music, they are some of my favorites, and I hope that you enjoy all the other songs that I have picked out to go with the story!

Quick little side note…Did anyone else see that amazing performance by Kenny Chesney and Dave Mathews of I'm Alive Wednesday night on the CMAs (after Glee of course). Amazing!!! And way to go Taylor Swift-I already have a few of her songs planned for upcoming chapters!

Anyways, I sincerely hope you enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Chapter 8 – Gravity

Rachel had managed to avoid just about everyone for the rest of the weekend, but come Monday there was no way to avoid any of them, much less him. As she opened her locker to grab her books for first period she could feel him come up behind her.

"Hey. I tried to call you this weekend."

Rachel shut her locker and started walking down the hall. Puck walked quickly after her because when she tried to, she could cover ground, and _fast_.

"Come on Rachel, you can't keep avoiding me." Rachel stopped at the comment and spun on her heel to face him.

"We are members of Glee. We aren't friends or whatever it was that we were last week. We are _just_ members of the same team now, that's it. As far as I am concerned last Friday you made it clear were you stood. So we'll sing our songs together and win competitions, but that's were it ends." She managed to deliver the whole thing quietly, yet forcefully, so that's the way he replied.

"That's all we ever were." They both turned and walked in opposite directions.

As Rachel walked into math Finn and Quinn were already sitting in their seats. Quinn sent her the usual death glare, and Rachel sent her one right back. Finn watched the two girls glare at each other before standing up to walk over to Rachel. Quinn grabbed his arm and hissed at him to sit back down, but he just moved out of her freakishly strong grasp and walked over the Rachel.

"Hey. I just wanted to apologize for what happened at the party Friday night."

"You don't have to apologize Finn, you didn't do anything."

"I know. But what Quinn did was way out of line, and I know that she'll never apologize for it." Rachel smiled at him, glad that he wasn't completely oblivious to his girlfriend's lack of charm.

"Yeah, I know she won't either. But thanks Finn, I appreciate it." Finn nodded his head before walking back to his seat. Rachel just wished that the guys in her life would make up their minds, be nice or be mean, none of this bouncing back and forth because it was screwing with emotions and she was getting really sick of it!

* * *

As usual, thankfully, when Rachel walked into Glee practice the Cheerios and football players weren't there yet so she walked over and sat between Mercedes and Kurt. She had barely pulled out her sheet music when Mr. Schue and the rest of the Glee club came walking in. Mr. Schue set his bag down on the piano to pull out the sheet music.

"Alright guys, here is your new music. Look over it and we'll do a real quick run through with the new songs before we practice the other ones. First up let's try _I'm Alive_, so leads step forward and everyone else take a step back." Rachel looked down at the papers that she had in her hand, and sure enough, she was one of the leads. As she stood up and stepped towards the front she noticed that both Puck and Finn stepped up as well.

"I liked the way that all of you sounded last week with this song, and since there are three sections, you will each have a verse." Mr. Schue stepped next to the piano and nodded his head to cue the band. Finn began singing the first section, with Puck taking the second. Rachel had the third section, the same one that she sang when they auditioned. And she hated to admit it but it sounded pretty good, great considering it was the first time. Which made her question what the hell she did wrong to be punished by having to sing this with _them_. Couldn't she sing it with someone else? Or couldn't they suck and Mr. Schue decided that there is no way that they will be using it in Sectionals? Nope, of course not, because apparently Rachel Berry was on the universe's shit list.

They ran through a few other songs that were on the list of possibilities for sectionals before they practiced (of course, since apparently today was the day to royally screw her) _I Hate Myself for Loving You_ (she was really hoping that they would practice _Don't Stop Believing _or _Somebody to Love_ because it would have been so much easier singing with Finn today then with _him_).

Even with all the baby drama (and overall Quinn drama) it never hurt as bad to sing with Finn as it did singing with Puck after the past week.

Despite her new mantra of '_I am better than this. I do not need Puck. I do not want Puck. I want Broadway. I will be Broadway. When people hear Broadway they will think Rachel Berry and will be in awe of the massive amount of talent packed into such a little package._' (which she is still working on shortening because it's way to long, especially for the number of times she finds her self needing to say it) she still wanted Puck with every fiber of her being-and the performance took on a whole new meaning.

After Glee practiced ended Puck began to walk over to where Rachel was getting her bag together, but Mercedes stepped in front of him and they did the awkward little dance as he tried to get around her and she kept moving in the same direction as him. He finally faked her out to his right before going around her to his left, only to come face to face with Tina. He was about to just lift the girl away, but when he glanced behind her he noticed that Rachel had already left the room. He sighed, well deeply breathed out because there is no way that Noah Puckerman ever sighed, before turning around and leaving through the other door. He knew that her last class for the day was history, he'll just be waiting outside of her class for her.

* * *

As Rachel walked out of last period she turned to walk down the hall only to come face to face with Puck. He grabbed her arm and began walking her down the hall until they got to an empty classroom. He shut the door behind them before letting go of her arm.

"We need to talk." Rachel crossed her arms across her chest and leaned against the nearest desk.

"Then talk."

"What happened Friday…" Puck paused, not exactly sure how to explain himself and sound believable without actually telling the whole truth. "What happened Friday wasn't what it looked like."

"Wow, that's original. Don't you have football practice that you should be at right now?"

"Would you just let me explain. It wasn't, whatever you thought it was. I went after Quinn because she threw her drink at you and she's pregnant."

"So what, you wanted to make sure that she didn't over exert herself with her bitchiness."

"It was beer Rachel. She was drinking beer and she's pregnant. I went after her to question her about that. I wasn't picking her over you, I just wanted to make sure that she wasn't hurting the baby." Puck held his breathe waiting for her response, except she just stayed silent and stared at him for a minute before she finally said anything.

"No offense, but that sounds like total bullshit."

"So it's bullshit that I would actually try to do something human."

"Just about. Why now Puck? Why after I've heard you call Quinn MILF and make snide comments to her and Finn about the baby would you suddenly grow a conscious and look out for it?"

"Her. It's a girl. And snide comments and names are one thing, hurting the baby is something totally different."

"And what did she say?"

"What?"

"Well, you went after Quinn and confronted her about her drinking, right?" Rachel did feel slightly bad about automatically not believing him, but it just didn't sound plausible. "So, what did she say to you?"

"She said that she wasn't drinking. She was only holding the cup to keep people from being suspicious, because up until that night, only the Glee club knew about the pregnancy." Puck really did feel bad about what had happened Friday. Somewhere during last week he began to somewhat like Rachel. Well like may be a slight stretch, she still made him want to set himself on fire, only now it seemed like a much funner prospect.

"Alright."

"So we're fine now?" Rachel stood up off the desk before answering him as truthfully as she knew how.

"I have no clue what we are." Rachel stepped around him before walking out of the school and towards the school parking lot. She tossed her bags in the back before climbing in her car and starting it. She glanced out to the practice field where she saw Puck running to the field house. He messed with her head way more than should be legal.

* * *

Puck knew that Coach was going to kill him for being late to practice but he needed to talk to Rachel. He knew that if he called or texted her she would probably just ignore him, so catching her after school was his only option. Although her last comment was a little cryptic, he felt like things were at least a little better between them then since the party.

As he finished running the extra laps after practice for being late he walked into the locker rooms and tried to get his head around what the hell Berry has been doing to him. He got Cougars, he got the Cheerios, hell, he had pretty much the whole female race figured out, except Rachel Berry. Most women got an eyeful of his abs or his arms and they were imagining him tying them up and tying them down. Which he would love doing with Rachel Berry, and not just because he knows that it would get under Quinn's skin and hopefully get her off this Lima Loser thing she's been spouting. It looks like he was going to have to pull out all of the stops when he came to getting her.

* * *

Immediately after Rachel walks into her room, she opens up her laptop and opens up iTunes. After the day that she had she needed to put a new playlist together and sing (Thank God the neighbors were currently on vacation). After she pulled the songs she hit play, then flopped back on her bed and began to sing her little Broadway-Bound heart out.

_Something always brings me back to you_

_It never takes too long_

_No matter what I say or do_

_I'll still fell you here 'til the moment I'm gone._

She closed her eyes and let the song take her to _that_ place. She couldn't really explain _that_ place. It wasn't really calm or even soothing. It wasn't happy or fun. It was more a sense of understanding. An understanding that she could feel because someone had been able to cram all the emotion that she was feeling into these lyrics and create a melody to harmonize it with. It was an understanding that didn't necessarily release the burden of reality, but at least lightened the load for a couple of minutes.

_You hold me without touch_

_You keep me without chains_

_I never wanted anything so much_

_Then to drown in your love and not feel your rain._

If she were really honest with herself she wouldn't be able to say whether Finn was her addiction or Puck was. Either way she knew that she needed to quit-they were more dangerous for her than she could handle (because yes, even Rachel Berry knew her limits).

_Set me free, leave me be_

_I don't want to fall another moment into your gravity_

_Here I am and I stand so tall_

_Just the way I'm suppose to be_

_But you're on to me and all over me._

With Finn the history went further, but there something almost naïve about it. With Puck it hadn't been long, but it was deep. And despite the slurpies and going after Quinn instead of her on Friday (because there was something fishy about the story he told her earlier, she wasn't that stupid), there was something that pulled her back to him.

_You loved me cause I'm fragile_

_But I thought that I was strong_

_But you touch me for a little while_

_And all my fragile strength is gone._

And she didn't think that anything besides singing would ever hold that power over her. She was strong and independent, that was the only way that she knew how to be anymore. And that Rachel Berry, did not get pulled around like this because of some feeling that went against any and all common sense.

_Set me free, leave me be_

_I don't want to fall another moment into your gravity_

_Here I am and I stand so tall_

_Just the way I am suppose to be_

_But you're on to me and all over me._

She let the tears pool in her eyes as this sense of despondency washed over her. She was addicted to him, to Puck. She still felt something towards Finn, it just didn't have the strength, the power, the passion, of what she felt for Puck. And she knew that there wasn't anything good that ever came from an addiction like this.

_I live here on my knees as I try to make you see that you're everything I think I need here on the ground_

_But you're neither friend nor foe though I can't seem to let you go_

_The one think I still know is that you're keeping me down._

She finally let the tears start to track down her cheeks. No matter how thick of a shell she had created over the years, he had somehow picked his way through it and settled in just under her skin. Which she could somehow come to accept, if he wanted to be there just as badly as she wanted to let him be there. But he really wanted to be with Quinn.

_Something always brings me back_

_It never takes too long._

* * *

The song is Gravity by Sara Bareilles-another one of my favorites (and I love the dance that Mia Michaels choreographed to it for So You Think You Can Dance last season!)!!!

And, as always, I would _love_ to know what you thought of this chapter/story, so drop a review!!!


	9. Chapter 9

Near to you

Thanks again for all of the reviews and alerts/favorites! You guys are awesome!!!

Sorry for such a delay in the update-I wanted to start another story I had in my head so this got slightly back burnered. That and I was just not inspired for this chapter so I hope it's not too bad. Anyways, I sincerely hope you enjoy this chapter!

* * *

**Chapter 9 – Curious**

As Rachel was pulling books from her bag and shoving them into her locker she felt someone step up behind her. She looked over her shoulder to see Puck standing there with his hands shoved into the pockets of his letterman jacket. She just never got a break. She could try to ditch temptation all she wanted, but somehow it would just sneak up right behind her, quite literally this time. She let out a sigh before turning back to her locker.

"Could you help me tonight with out new song? I'm not sure if I'm hitting the right notes and I don't want to be the one to mess up at Sectionals and cost us the win. I'm a badass, but even I have limits."

After practice last night Puck wracked his brains trying to figure out how to get Rachel to forgive him and get back to whatever they were last week. Because when she dropped the whole diva attitude and relaxed, Rachel Berry was actually pretty cool, and she had a great ass that looked even better in the short skirts that she wore. He figured the best way to get her was through her passion, music. If he played the whole I need help with singing because I don't want to let the team down thing, he might be able to get her to spend more time with him and prove to her that he is not a complete ass (granted he had his totally assy moments-like knocking up his best friend's girl-but he wasn't always an ass, always a badass, but not always an ass). And from the look on her face it looks like it might work.

"Alright. I'll meet you in the auditorium after football practice."

"Thanks Berry. See you in Glee practice." Puck turned around and began walking off. Mission accomplished.

* * *

Throughout the day Rachel kept trying to figure out why she agreed to help him. Of course she couldn't just let a team member down and she really wants to win at Sectionals, but couldn't she have just told him to have someone else help him, like Artie. Granted he didn't have quite the experience that she had, but she knew that he was a good singer and could help Puck. Damn those lovely arms. As she walked into the auditorium a few minutes early she was surprised to see Puck already waiting on the stage, sitting on a stool strumming his guitar. He looked up as he heard the door shut.

"Hey Berry. You ready to practice."

"I was born ready Puck. Why don't we run through the whole thing to warm up, and then we can break in down from there." Puck nodded his head and began playing the song. Rachel moved her way over to the piano to accompany him. As she listened with a critical ear to him sing she couldn't figure out why he needed her help. Despite the fact that he was lacking her years of training, his voice was very good-it wasn't flat and he was hitting all of the notes correctly. She came in on the choruses and on her section, the whole time she can feel his eyes burning into her back.

"Why did you ask me to help you? We both know you don't need it."

"I figured this was the only way that I could get you to listen to me." Rachel looked over her shoulder to see Puck staring down at his guitar as he was talking to her. "I wanted to apologize about this weekend again. I know I did yesterday, but I don't think that you completely believed me. I am sorry Rachel, I didn't mean for you to think that I was choosing Quinn over you." He finally looked up at her at the end. That was her undoing. She could see it in his eyes that he was telling the truth, and it somehow both hurt and felt freeing at the same time-but she wasn't going to dwell on why.

"I believe you."

"Good. Then let's go grab some pizza or something. I'm starving."

"What?! Where did that come from?"

"It came from my growling stomach. I need food, and we already decided that I don't need practice. I mean, I'm a badass and you're …well, you're a badass when it comes to singing-so let's skip practice and grab some food."

Rachel shrugged her shoulders. Her life has turned into some weird drama this past week and a half, mine as well let the ride take her where it will.

"Why not." Puck thought it was going to take a lot more talking to get her to go eat with him. He jumped up and put his guitar in the case before picking his stuff up and walking towards Rachel.

"Good. I'll drive."

* * *

As they were sitting in the diner Puck ordered a burger, fries, and large milkshake. Rachel shook her head at him as the waitress walked away.

"Dairy is bad for your vocal chords. You should stick with water or tea."

"Me and my vocal chords do just fine with milkshakes. In fact we love them. Not quite as much as we love beer or slushies, but milkshakes still rank pretty high up there."

"And somehow I hate slushies. Wonder why that would be?"

"So Berry, how do you know so much about football?"

"Nice segue there Puck. Why don't you want to talk about my aversion to slushies?" She heard him mumble under his breath and knew that he was never actually going to answer the question-she never expected him to. "One of my dads likes football and so growing up we would watch games together and he taught me about it. No big deal?"

"No big deal. Before last week I would have thought that you wouldn't know the difference between a homerun and a touchdown, much less know the various football positions."

"It's not like I have a vast array of sports knowledge, I just know my football."

"Rachel Berry not just knowing football, but liking football, was about as believable as Finn getting a

Perfect score on his SAT."

"You never know, some people test well." Rachel could barely get that out before they both started laughing. They both liked the guy, but he actually cheated off of Brittney. As their food and drinks arrived they stopped talking except for the odd comment or two. But it wasn't an uncomfortable silence, it was strangely easy for both of them. After they both finished and Puck paid the bill, because according to him he had a killer pool cleaning job at which Rachel just rolled her eyes at, they walked out to his truck with his arm draped around her shoulders.

As Puck drove her back to school so that she could pick up her car, he turned the radio up. As _Use Somebody_ came on he began drumming is fingers on the steering wheel and could hear Rachel humming along.

"Don't tell me you know a song that is not Broadway or older than us."

"This may surprise you Puckerman, but there's a lot more to me than you think."

"I'm beginning to realize that Berry." She smiled over at him before looking back out the passenger side window and began to quietly sing along.

When they got to the school he pulled into the spot right next to her car. "I actually had a good time tonight."

"Me too. Who would have thought that I could spend a couple of hours with you and not want to knee you."

"Come on Berry, there's more to me than you think."

"You just may be right." As Rachel looked down to unbuckle her seatbelt, Puck cupped her chin and lifted her head up before he crashed his lips down on hers. She gasped in surprise and he used the moment to begin exploring every crevice that he memorized last Friday night. When she gets over the shock she lets out a groan and grabs the collar of his letterman jacket to pull him closer. They finally break apart as air becomes a necessity and the center console is getting in the way. Rachel sat back in hers seat to undo her seatbelt and Puck turned back towards the wheel thinking that she was leaving.

As Rachel climbed over the center console to straddle him, Puck sent her questioning look. Rachel just smiled and shrugged her shoulders before bending her head down to kiss him. He dragged his hands up her thighs and flirted with the edge of the skirt. She finally pulled away when she heard her phone beeping, indicating that she had missed a call. As she reached for her purse to pull it out, Puck began to kiss his way down her neck.

"I have to go now. I promised my dads I'd be back before now."

"OK." He answered as he stopped kissing her neck. "See you tomorrow?" After Rachel nodded her head in the affirmative Puck gently kissed her one last time before helping her back to the passenger side of the truck.

* * *

As she started her car she popped in the mix CD that she had made the other day and made her way out of the parking lot. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her heart that was still racing.

_Someone tell me what to do_

_I feel like I must be a fool_

_For ending up right back at the start_

_The things that we don't comprehend_

_Are laughing at my mind again_

_I think that I think too hard_

_And I don't give enough credit to my heart_

Last night she had decided that to move on she needed to make a little box to put Puck in. He was a fellow Glee member with amazing abs, arms, and an amazing voice, who confused her heart and mind to no end, but she must stay away because no good could come out of a bad boy. Right? Now he just completed obliterated that box and she was left more confused than ever. Especially after that little make-out session in the truck. Pfft, who was she kidding, there was nothing little about Puck.

_I am so damn curious to know_

_And there are too many unanswered questions_

_That we hold on to_

She had always prided herself on her organizational and time management skills. She had every small detail mapped out, even had an Excel file that neatly outlined her daily, weekly, and monthly schedules, with tabs dedicated to her 5-year, 10-year, and yes, even 15-year plans. She had even made a Project Finn tab when he first joined Glee which outlined her plan for them as a couple. Needless to day Baby Bitch, she means Baby Quinn, threw a wrench in that little plan-Rachel Berry would not sink to the level of home wrecking.

_I've put my theories to the test_

_You know I've tried to do my best_

_But maybe we weren't meant to strike gold_

_Sometime things that you ignore_

_Are all the things I'm looking for_

_Will I learn to let go_

_Give into love and listen to my soul_

But the Cheerios and football players joined Glee, and Puck threw her whole world into a downward spiral into this chaotic mess. And a part of Rachel really wanted to rebel, throw her hands up, and go wherever that boy may lead because she is so curious as to where that may be.

_I am so damn curious to know_

_And there are too many unanswered questions_

_That we hold on to_

She licks her lips as she takes a breath and can still taste him. Rachel Berry was stubborn and independent, but apparently she had a major weakness for bad boy athletes with Mohawks and sexy smirks. Add a guitar and hot voice on top of that and she was done for.

_Potraits of your loved ones_

_Are more than what you see_

_All the elements they capture_

_Are more to you than me_

_A different dimension we've yet to define_

_There's a forest to cut through with thorns and vines_

_There is no reason to try_

She had deleted the Project Finn tab the day that she found out about the pregnancy. And right about now she was tempted to make a Finn tab. Her fingers itched and she already had the color scheme made up in her mind. But she knew that there was no planning anything with that bad boy. Hell, when she got up this morning she had planned on running through a few vocal exercises, doing a Pilates routine, and then getting ahead a bit on her school work, not singing, eating dinner, and then making out with said bad boy.

'_Cause I am so damn curious to know_

_And there are too many unanswered questions_

_That we hold on to_

OK, so she might not make a Project Puck tab tonight, but she just may do some laundry. Afterall, her favorite pair of jeans combined with her black and red Jimmy Choos somehow made her short little legs seem like a mile long. Pair that with her new red sweater she had bought last weekend, and she knew that he wouldn't know what hit him tomorrow. She remembered hearing somewhere that men were mostly visual creatures. She hopes that's true because she was planning on being _really_ visual tomorrow.

_I am so damn curious to know_

_And there are too many unanswered questions_

_That I hold on to_

_Like you._

The song ended just as Rachel pulled into her driveway. She checked herself in her rearview mirror to make sure that she was presentable before climbing out of her car and smoothing down her skirt. She knew that if she explained to her dads that she was helping another member of the Glee club with their voice, they would just smile and comment on how much of a helper their little Rachel Barbara is. She always slightly cringed when they said that. For some reason when she heard helper she always thought of Santa's elves.

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Song is _Curious_ by Holly Brook. As always, I would love to know what you thought so please drop me a review!


	10. Chapter 10

**Near to you**

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Thanks again for all of the reviews and alerts/favorites! You guys are awesome!!! Sorry for the delay in getting this done and up-I get distracted way too easily. Song in this chapter is _Collide_ by Howie Day. Anyways, I sincerely hope you enjoy this chapter!

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Chapter 10 - Collide**

Rachel walked into school the next day ready to impress-that is until she got the nice, ice cold, slushy facial. And not just by one, but by six of them. She wiped it out of her eyes to see the six hockey players walking away. It was then that she realized that she hadn't brought an extra set of clothes today-she figured that she was done with Puck throwing slushies at her. Oddly enough the fact that she was technically correct about that didn't ease the situation at all. She turned to walk to the locker room to get cleaned up as best as she could when she ran in to him.

"Berry, who the hell did this to you?" Granted, up until a little over a week ago it had been him giving her the slushy facials, but he was Noah Puckerman, all around badass. And he never left her looking the way that she looked right now, absolutely drenched-although the look kind of suited her, with her clothes completely molding to every single curve of her body. He finally dragged his eyes up to her face to see her push her hair out of her face before answering.

"Some of the hockey players."

"Which ones?"

"It doesn't really matter Puck, this happens all the time. You can't get all righteous and knight-in-shining-armor like when it's normally you who does this to me. Excuse me, I need to go clean up."

He stood there and watched her walk off. He wanted to tell her that he wasn't like those hockey players, but he knew it wasn't true. Just last week he slushied her, but that was before-well before what he couldn't actual pinpoint, but he wasn't like that anymore. Well, okay he would still totally throw a slushy on someone, just not Berry. He finally snapped out of it to see Mercedes nodding her head at Rachel before they walked off in separate directions. Puck stopped Mercedes to ask her what Rachel needed.

"Boy, you are lucky that it wasn't you who did that to her, otherwise –"

"I know, I know, you'd have to cut me. What does she need?"

"She didn't bring her extra set of clothes with her today so she asked me to go find a shirt or something to wear." Mercedes went to walk off, but Puck grabbed her arm.

"Wait." He reached into his backpack to pull out his football hoodie. "Here, give this to her." Mercedes lifted both of her eyebrows in question. "What? We're team members or Gleeks or whatever. Look, just give it to her will you." Puck slung his bag up higher on his shoulder before turning and walking down the hall.

Rachel was used to the stares and whispers she normally got for being the Glee freak that most thought her to be. What she wasn't used to where the stares and whispers she got for wearing the McKinley High Football hoodie with Puckerman across the back. She had yet to see him to thank him for the sweatshirt-although to be truthful she wasn't searching him out because Noah Puckerman made her mind spin, and not always in a good way. She put some books in her locker before grabbing her lunch and heading to the choir room. She wanted to do some studying for her history test later and fit in some vocal warm-ups before Glee practice. As she opened the door she saw Puck sitting there strumming his guitar.

"Since when do you come in here during lunch? Aren't you normally with the other football players and Cheerios?"

Puck was about to open his mouth to say that he almost came in here last week, but Rachel never knew that it was him who heard her singing last week. She would also never know that this past weekend he searched the internet for three, _three_, hours to find and download that damn song. Noah Puckerman did not do that kind of shit.

"Felt like a change for today." She just shrugged her shoulder, not feeling like pushing him any further today. She made her way over to the piano bench and pulled out her history book as she sat down. She flipped to the chapter she needed to study, but after staring at the same paragraph for ten minutes she decided to just give up-there is no way that she can do any studying when Puck was within a ten foot radius of her. She put her book back and grabbed out the bag of chips she had thrown in her bag for lunch. She sat there eating, listening to Puck playing on his guitar as she slowly felt the tension seep from her shoulders.

Puck could feel her eyes on him and the only thing that he could think was how quiet Rachel was being. Not only was Rachel never quiet, but she was not quiet in a big way with all of the massive vocabulary and super fast talking. He couldn't quite figure out whether he liked the quiet Rachel or not, after all it was a little freaky. He had been just randomly playing bits of music, but when he began playing _Viva la Vida_ Rachel recognized the song and turned towards the piano to play with him.

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Within a couple of days they settled into a sort of pattern-every lunch they would meet up in the choir room, have a bite to eat really quick, before playing their respective instruments, quietly singing. After not hearing from him over the weekend (it's not like she kept her cell phone with her at all times just in case he happened to call and want to go do something, she just thought that it was a practical manner to have a form of communication nearby at all times in case of an emergency-and she was getting pretty good at convincing herself of this), she was unsure whether she would find him there in the choir room during lunch on Monday.

Unbeknownst to her, Puck had actually spent the entire weekend thinking about Rachel. OK, so a lot of that time was thinking about getting into her pants, but he would admit (only to himself) that he actually had feelings for her. He finally decided that there was one way to endure that he got her-a little good old-fashioned serenading. And what better time than their little lunch sessions. He was there waiting for her, but didn't bother looking up when he heard her walk into the room.

Rachel walked into the room and sat down at her usual place on the piano bench. She was in the middle of grabbing the orange she had brought for lunch when she heard him start to play a song-he usually waited to start playing songs until she was done with her lunch. She looked up at him to see him just staring at his guitar. He didn't raise his eyes to her until he began singing.

_The dawn is breaking_

_A light shining through_

_You're barely waking_

_And I'm tangled up in you_

_I'm open, you're closed_

_Where I follow, you'll go_

_I worry I won't see your face_

_Light up again_

Puck had spent the entire weekend trying to figure out what song to sing to her. He figured he could either go with the whole typical romantic song that you usually hear for a couples first dance at a wedding or he could go with the whole deep and sexy Berry White. He immediately threw out the second idea thinking he would look completely retarded if he went that route. In the end he decided to go with a romantic song, but one that he thought could actually be applied to them.

_Even the best fall down sometimes_

_Even the wrong words seem to rhyme_

_Out of the doubt that fills my mind_

_I somehow find you and I collide_

Rachel was shocked to say the least, and completely turned on. She remembered the way that she felt when she first heard Finn singing _You're the One I Want_-completely turned on beyond belief. But this, this was _so_ much more. In every play, movie, TV show, any performance of any kind that she had seen where the guy serenades the girl, the independent side of her scoffed at the gesture. But the rest of her absolutely craved to be serenaded. And what better way than by an über sexy jock with a voice that made her feel like there was a small fire igniting under her skin.

_I'm quiet you know_

_You make a first impression_

_I've found I'm scared to know_

_I'm always on your mind_

Puck watched the smile form on Rachel's face and let out an inner sigh that things were not only going okay, but great. He had originally messed with the idea of using Rachel to get to Quinn, but he came to realize that in the past week every time he thought about Rachel (which was only about once every 15 seconds) it had nothing to do with Quinn. It was then that he changed his tactics from a get Rachel to get Quinn plan to simply a get Rachel plan. And from the looks of it, it looks like his plan was going quite smoothly to say the least.

_Even the best fall down sometimes_

_Even the wrong words seem to rhyme_

_Out of the doubt that fills my mind_

_I somehow find you and I collide_

Puck never had a chance to finish the song because Rachel threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Song credit for this one goes to Howie Day for _Collide_.

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As always, I would love to hear your thoughts on this chapter. Next Chapter's song is the song that inspired the title, Near to You by A Fine Frenzy. Love that song! And hopefully since I love it-I will actually get it written and up relatively soon.


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